Pros and cons of Baltimore Ravens taking Ole Miss football's Tavius Robinson in 2023 NFL Draft

David Eckert, Mississippi Clarion Ledger
·2 min read
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OXFORD — Ole Miss football EDGE Tavius Robinson was selected by the Baltimore Ravens with the 124th pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft on Saturday.

Robinson, who arrived in Oxford alongside coach Lane Kiffin for the 2020 season, was arguably the most important contributor on the Rebels' defense last season, and has been rewarded for his development with a chance to catch on with the Ravens.

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The positives

Robinson weighed in at the NFL Combine at 6-foot-6, 257 pounds and completed his 40-yard dash in 4.66 seconds. At his size, he certainly has the athletic profile to compete for playing time at the NFL level. You would be hard-pressed to find a more physically impressive player on the Rebels' roster last season.

And, though it would be tempting to describe someone with Robinson's athletic gifts as a "project" type draft pick, that feels dismissive of what Robinson achieved with Ole Miss last season. He led the Rebels in sacks with six and also had a penchant for making plays on the ball, forcing four fumbles and recovering two.

The concerns

Despite everything listed above, Robinson wasn't really favored by the analytics folks. He finished the 2022 season with a 69.7 overall defensive grade on Pro Football Focus.

With his build, he could stand to improve a bit as a run-stopper, which PFF listed as one of the weakest parts of his game a season ago.

Final thoughts

Robinson is an older guy at 24, but don't equate that with having little room to grow. The native of Ontario, Canada, started his collegiate career playing for the University of Guelph, winning two letters there before catching the attention of high-major college football coaches in the United States.

This is not a player who grew up in the football efficiency machine that produces so much of the high-level talent these days. His improvement in his final season with Ole Miss shows that he is still capable of progressing within the game.

Because of that, Robinson offers considerably more upside than you might otherwise get at this point in the draft.

David Eckert covers Ole Miss for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at deckert@gannett.com or reach him on Twitter @davideckert98.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Baltimore Ravens pick Ole Miss' Tavius Robinson in 2023 NFL Draft

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